


River

by martianwahtney



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Awesome James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Bucky Barnes Feels, Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, Bucky Barnes Recovering, Couch Cuddles, Cuddling & Snuggling, EVEN KINKIER, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Forehead Kisses, GOD SOMEONE STOP ME, Harley Keener is Sassy, Holding Hands, I love my son, Iron Dad, James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark Friendship, James "Rhodey" Rhodes is a Good Bro, Language of Flowers, M/M, Movie Night, Protective James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Sharing a Bed, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Tony Being Tony, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Has Issues, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Touch-Starved, Touch-Starved Bucky Barnes, Touch-Starved Tony Stark, also my son James Rhodes is about to enter, and by that I mean the only canon IW thing is what happens to Peter, did i just write a whole chapter featuring the boys watching Star Wars, fucc that's kinky, just think about that when Harley and Peter are soft, oh and before I forget Infinity War is canon in this so you're welcome, they just hold hands so much, this is crazy kinky i can't believe, this is going to be the softest thing I've ever written, u bet ur ass i did
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-30
Updated: 2018-09-07
Packaged: 2019-04-30 00:57:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 10,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14485245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/martianwahtney/pseuds/martianwahtney
Summary: Two weeks after the so-called Civil War, Shuri drops a healing Bucky Barnes off at the Avengers Compound. Tony figures out pretty quickly that they both have a lot of healing to do.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Flight_Of_Icarus](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flight_Of_Icarus/gifts).



“ _Boss_ ,” FRIDAY called uncertainly.  
  
“Hm,”  
  
“ _Sergeant Barnes wants to know if you want dinner,_ ”  
  
“He wants what now?” Tony asked.  
  
“ _Dinner. The evening meal. The meal commonly eaten after-_ ”  
  
“Alright! Stop sassing me!” Tony said with a small smile. She was really growing into her code.  
  
“What’d he make?”  
  
“ _Chicken alfredo,_ ”  
  
“Are you conspiring against me, baby girl?” Tony asked.  
  
“ _Of course not Boss!_ ”  
  
“You are lying through your servers. I’m going to donate you to a community college in New Jersey one of these days,”  
  
“ _Looking forward to it,_ ”  
  
Tony rolled his eyes and huffed out a small laugh.  
  
“ _Should I tell Sergeant Barnes you’ll be joining him?_ ”  
  
Tony tensed, his fingers drumming against his chest, right where the arc reactor used to be.  
  
Princess Shuri of Wakanda had dropped Barnes off at the Compound hardly two weeks after the so called Civil War. She said something about fixing a broken white boy as best as she could and now it was up to him before she left. Tony and Barnes had stared at each other for a few long moments before Tony stepped him aside to let him into the Compound.  
  
It had been three days since then. Tony had told Barnes to tell FRIDAY if he needed anything and promptly fled down to the workshop. He kept finding reasons to stay down there, to keep avoiding Barnes. It was childish, Tony knew it was. He just wasn’t ready to face Barnes.  
  
“ _Boss?_ ”  
  
“When’s the last time I ate?”  
  
“ _You haven’t had solid food since Sergeant Barnes arrived,_ ”  
  
“Shit,”  
  
“Tell him I’ll be up in a minute,” he said.  
  
“ _Sure, Boss,_ ”  
  
Tony wasn’t imagining the pride in her voice. He pushed himself away from his workbench. He washed his hands in the sink in his lab and for a few moments he stared at himself in the mirror. The bruises on his face had nearly healed.  
  
“I can do this,” he said to himself.  
  
He couldn’t keep ignoring Barnes. It wasn’t healthy.  
  
“Tell Barnes I’m on my way up,” Tony said as he pushed himself away from the sink. 

  
  


Tony stepped into the kitchen and paused, hovering near the doorway. Barnes was standing at the stove, his hair in a messy bun. He glanced up at Tony and smiled softly. Tony made a mental note to ask Shuri what the hell she did to Barnes. It was like he was looking at a whole different person than the one he met in Siberia- and Tony was definitely not thinking about that.  
  
“Hey,” Tony said quietly.  
  
“Hey,” Barnes replied, just as quietly.  
  
“Hope you don’ mind. FRIDAY mentioned you liked pasta,” he said.  
  
Tony just nodded until Barnes’ words caught up with him.  
  
“You dirty little liar!” he accused, tilting his head up to the ceiling.  
  
“ _Don’t know what you’re talking about, Boss,_ ” she replied, sounding far too innocent to be believed.  
  
“When you end up at McDonald’s, just know this is where you went wrong,” Tony warned.  
  
“ _I thought I was going to a community college?_ ” she teased in her Irish lilt.  
  
“Community college is too good for you,”  
  
“I wouldn’ say that,” Barnes interrupted quietly.  
  
“ _Thank you, Sergeant Barnes,_ ”  
  
“Any time, ma’am,”  
  
“You sweet talking my baby girl?” Tony asked, unable to keep the smile off his face.  
  
“She’s amazin’,” Barnes said.  
  
“She is,”  
  
“ _Thanks, Boss!_ ”  
  
Tony shook his head at her sudden voice.  
  
“Here,” Barnes said, holding out a plate that was nearly overflowing with chicken alfredo. Tony’s hands clenched into fists.  
  
“I- I don’t like being handed things,” he said.  
  
For just a second Barnes looked surprised before he shrugged and set the plate down on the counter.  
  
“Thanks,”  
  
Tony picked up the plate and set it down on the small kitchen table. He poured two glasses of water and brought them back to the table. He sat down and Barnes sat across from him, setting a fork near Tony’s plate. Tony picked up the fork, twirled it in the pasta, and took a bite. Tony was mildly surprised at how good it was, could have used a little more garlic, but for a nearly 100 year old ex-brainwashed assassin, it was a very good attempt.  
  
“It’s good,”  
  
“Kind of bland,”  
  
“More garlic next time,”  
  
“Huh,”  
  
Then they fell into silence. Tony’s mind was screaming at him to say something, to say anything. But every time he tried to say something, the words kept getting stuck in this throat.

“Sorry I shot off your arm,” Tony said quietly. His dark eyes flashed up to Barnes. The other man looked surprised, like he wasn’t expecting Tony to apologize. A ridiculous notion, Tony thought.  
  
“Sorry I killed your mom,” Barnes said just as quietly, his eyes never leaving Tony’s.  
  
Tony wanted to say that he didn’t blame Barnes for that, that he knew it was HYDRA’s fault, but he couldn’t seem to make himself say it. He’d seen the footage. He knew it was HYDRA that carried out the order, but it was still Barnes’ body they used to do it and he was having a hard time getting that image out of his head.  
  
“Right,”  
  
And that was that.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and Bucky have a movie night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my friend Chris hates the prequels so that's where I got my inspiration from ((edit, i've been informed that i got the most hated prequel number wrong so i changed it))

“ _Boss,_ ”  
  
“Yea?”  
  
“ _Sergeant Barnes wants to know if you want to watch Star Wars,_ ”  
  
“Why are you conspiring against me?”  
  
“ _I think you should go, he wants to start on Episode 1,_ ”  
  
“He wants to do what?!”  
  
Tony made it to the communal living room in record breaking time. There was no way he could let Barnes start on Episode 1.  
  
“You take the suit up here or what?” Barnes asked.  
  
“You can’t start with Episode 1,” Tony protested, not bothering with pleasantries or answering his question.  
  
“Why not?”  
  
“Because that’s not how it goes,”  
  
Barnes blinked.  
  
“You sure?”  
  
“I’ve seen them,”  
  
For a second Barnes stared at him, a confused expression on his face.  
  
“Did they change the order of numbers while I was in cryo?”  
  
“What?”  
  
“Why wouldn’ we start on number 1?”  
  
“Because it doesn’t go like that!”  
  
“How does it go then?”  
  
“4, 5, 6, then 2 and 3,”  
  
“What the hell happened to 1?”  
  
“Eh,” Tony said with a shrug.  
  
“Fine, fine, whatever. You watchin’ with me?”  
  
“If only to keep you from watching it out of order,” Tony agreed. A small smile lit Barnes’ face.  
  
Tony curled up at the far end of the couch. He grabbed a pillow and hugged it against his chest.  
  
“Play Episode 4, will you FRI?”  
  
“ _Yes, Boss,_ ”  
  
“You better be right about this,” Barnes grumbled.  
  
“I’m always right about everything,”  
  
“ _Actually, Boss-_ ”  
  
“Don’t!”  
  
Barnes snorted. Tony just shook his head.  
  
If Tony was being honest he spent a hell of a lot more time watching Barnes than he did watching the movie. He’d seen Star Wars many times. Barnes was an animated person. It was vastly different from that video. Tony glanced away from Barnes.  
  
“You sure we’re doin’ this right?” Barnes asked as the credits started rolling.  
  
“Yes,”  
  
“I’m going to make coffee. You want some?” Tony asked.  
  
“I’m good, thanks,”  
  
Tony nodded and stood. He tossed the pillow back on the couch and for the kitchen. He poured himself a very large cup of coffee before making his way back to the living room where Barnes had already queued up Episode 5.  
  
Tony, once again, found himself watching Barnes instead of the movie. He paid special attention to Barnes’ reaction to the Luke and Leia kiss, he looked like he had been expecting the kiss, which was going to make it a real joy to see his reaction in Episode 6. Tony was definitely looking forward to his reactions to the many other plot twists.  
  
“Luke, I am your father,”  
  
Barnes froze as Luke screamed. His metal hand frozen near his face. He continued to stare at the tv, unmoving, not even blinking, for nearly three minutes.  
  
“What,” he croaked.  
  
“You are going to love the next movie, Frosty Freeze,” Tony said with a wide smile. Barnes looked utterly horrified and fascinated.  
“What?” he repeated, finally blinking a few times.  
  
The movie was over not long after the big reveal. Tony’s eyes felt a little gritty, but he wasn’t going to leave, there was still one more movie left in the original trilogy and he was definitely not going to miss Barnes’ reaction to Luke and Leia being twins. 

“Whaddya mean they’re twins?” Barnes howled, he chucked the pillow at the tv screen with a surprising amount of force. Tony couldn’t help the laugh that exploded from his chest.  
  
“We gotta watch more movies together, Snowflake, if only for your reactions,” Tony said.  
  
Barnes looked at him, a small smile on his face. The expression morphed to something like worry as his eyes flickered to the tv.  
  
“Are they all gonna be like this?”  
  
Tony grinned and winked at him.

  


Tony was more than ready for sleep when the credits started to roll. He stood and stretched out, wincing at the cracks his joints made. He picked up his coffee mug and started to make his way out of the living room.  
  
Tony felt a soft touch brush against his wrist and he turned back to Barnes who immediately pulled back.  
  
“Thanks for joinin’ me,” he said.  
  
“Yea well, you were going to watch them in the wrong order. Couldn’t have that kind of blasphemy in my Tower,”  
  
Tony took the mug to the kitchen and set it in the sink. For a few moments he stared at his wrist. The skin tingled from where Barnes had touched him. He shook his wrist out, trying to dispel the feeling, but it didn’t fade. He tried to recall the last time someone touched him without hurting him. The last time he could come up with was the hug between him and Rhodey nearly two weeks earlier when Rhodey had gone off to state of the art PT program in DC.  
  
Tony tapped his wrist against the edge of the sink. Two weeks without physical contact.  
  
“Shit,” he whispered.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony learns a fun new thing about Bucky's arm, they watch the prequels, and Tony's conscience sounds a lot like Rhodes

“ _Boss_ ,”  
  
Tony just nodded his head, a screwdriver between his lips kept him from speaking.  
  
“ _Sergeant Barnes made too much coffee, he wants to know if you’d like some_ ,” she reported.  
  
Tony spat the tool from his mouth and it clattered against the floor.  
  
“How do you make too much coffee? You ask the coffee maker for one cup of coffee, it’s as easy as that!”  
  
“ _Barnes ended up with two mugs full_ ,” FRIDAY chimed, if she had a body she would be shrugging her shoulders.  
  
“Fine, tell him I’m on my way,” 

  
  


“I dunno, I asked for a cuppa coffee and it just kept comin’,” Barnes said, looking entirely too innocent for his own good.  
  
“You,” Tony started, pointing his finger at Barnes.  
  
“Are a lying liar, who lies,”  
  
“I dunno what you’re talkin’ about. Do you, ma’am?” Barnes asked.  
  
“ _Nope_ ,”  
  
“The betrayal! One of these days, FRI-”  
  
“ _You’ll ship me off to a community college in New Jersey, I know Boss_ ,”  
  
Barnes snickered. Tony pouted and took a sip of his coffee. He watched a smile spread across Barnes’ face as he picked up his coffee mug with his metal hand. Barnes passed it it to his human hand and then back to the metal one, the smile on his face grew.  
  
“You good, Tasty Freeze?”  
  
“I can feel the heat,” Barnes explained.  
  
Tony nodded slowly.  
  
“Kinda like havin’ a real arm again,”  
  
Barnes shifted his grip on the mug and he beamed. And Jesus Christ what a smile it was.

  
  


Tony was in his lab, pointedly ignoring his feelings, when Shuri’s email came in. Her notes on the arm. Tony pushed his current project to the side and pulled up the holographic notes. God the kid was brilliant. He wanted to print the notes out, have her sign them, frame them, and hang them on the walls of his lab.  
  
He was nearly finished reading when his attention was snagged by a small note at the bottom of the page.

_Arm needs human touch to get Barnes used to the feeling again._

Tony stared at the note for a long time. Logically, it made sense. The old arm couldn’t do that which meant Barnes had been without feeling in his left arm for 70 years. He needed to get used to human touch again.  
  
What Shuri was implying, however, was the bit Tony was having trouble with. There were no other people who used the Avengers section of the Compound. If there was no other person, then that meant-  
  
“Well, shit,”  
  
“ _Is now a bad time to mention that Sergeant Barnes is waiting on you to watch Episode 2?_ ” FRIDAY asked.  
  
“You really are conspiring against me, aren’t you?”  
  
“ _I’m not sure what you’re talking about, Boss,_ ”  
  
Tony swatted absently at the air. He swiped at the holograms and made his way to the living room. Barnes was already on the couch when Tony walked in.  
  
“You sure we don’ gotta watch episode 1?” Barnes asked.  
  
“Absolutely,” Tony replied.  
  
Barnes looked skeptical. Tony sat down on the couch near him. His eyes kept driving to the metal hand.  
  
_Human touch_ , his conscience- which sounded remarkably like Rhodes- reminded him.  
  
He just had to get the initial contact over with. That’s it. Just reach out and grab the hand. Tony held hands with Rhodey all the time, this wasn’t much different. Then why was Tony having so much trouble?  
  
A distressed squeak escaped him as his hand darted out to grab the metal one. Barnes froze. Tony pointedly did not look at him. He kept his gaze locked on the tv.  
  
“Didn’ think the movie was that scary,” Barnes commented.  
  
Tony forced his shoulders to relax as he glanced at Barnes.  
  
“Shuri’s notes said you needed to get used to human touch,” Tony explained, trying his best to act nonchalant about the whole thing.  
  
“And you thought-?”  
  
“Yep,”  
  
Barnes looked at their hands for a moment.  
  
“So we’re just gonna hold hands now?”  
  
“Yep,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thousands of miles away, a conversation happens:   
> "why are you watching live data feeds from Sergeant Barnes' arm?"   
> "silence brother! I think they're holding hands!"


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> they bake, hold hands a little more, and sass each other

“ _Boss?_ ” FRIDAY called.  
  
Tony sighed softly, forcing his eyes open. He definitely wasn’t going to get any sleep.  
  
“Yea?”  
  
“ _Sergeant Barnes can’t sleep either_ ,”  
  
“Where is he?”  
  
“ _Kitchen_ ,”  
  
Tony dragged himself out of bed and pulled on the well worn MIT sweatshirt that he had stolen from Rhodes. He headed for the kitchen and was greeted with the sight of Bucky Barnes with a messy bun, an Iron Man apron tied around his waist, and a horrifying scowl on his face that was being directed at a cookbook.  
  
“What’s up Snowflake?”  
  
Barnes glanced at him and softened, a small smile tugging at his lips. If Tony didn’t know any better, he’d call it a fond smile. But that was just ridiculous.  
  
“When it says’ta ‘fold in’ the blueberries does it actually mean fold in?” Barnes asked.  
  
Tony shrugged.  
  
“I’m pretty sure you could just stir it and get the same results,”  
  
“Then why the hell does it say fold?”  
  
“Bakers are pretentious,”  
  
Barnes laughed. Tony smiled at the sound. Barnes grabbed a wooden spoon, dumped some blueberries into the batter, and started mixing.  
  
“Can’t sleep?” Tony asked.  
  
“Spent enough time sleepin’. Why’re you up?”  
  
“Always had insomnia, it’s great for inventing binges, not so much for anything else,”  
  
Barnes looked at him for a moment.  
  
“I guess we’re both shit outta luck,” he said.

  
  


It took 22 very long minute for the muffins to bake. Barnes leaned back against the counter, waiting for them to be done. Tony stood next to him, at first they held hands. For science. Then Tony pulled his phone out to text Rhodes and Barnes’ metal hand ended up on the back of his neck, fingers stroking at the small hairs at the base of Tony’s head. Also for science.

  
  


“Ana used to do this thing where… hang on,”  
  
Tony stooped down and pulled out a pan. He placed it on the stove and turned the burner on to medium heat.  
  
“We already made the muffins, Stark, what else could’ya be makin’?” Barnes asked.  
  
“Patience is a virtue, Snowflake,”  
  
Tony let his hand hover above the pan and felt heat press against his palm. Tony pulled his muffin apart, separating the top from the bottom. He slathered butter on the bottom of the top half and let it sear on the pan. After a little over a minute he pulled it off and offered it to Barnes who, as always, looked skeptical.  
  
“Have I led you astray yet?”  
  
“You let me watch the prequels,” Barnes muttered as he took the muffin top from Tony.  
  
“That was your choice, Frosty Freeze,” Tony said, unable to keep a smile off his face. He watched Barnes take a bite of the muffin, he chewed maybe twice before he shoved the rest of the muffin top into his mouth. Tony smirked.  
  
“FRIDAY, I want this marked down in the calendar. I was right, yet again,”  
  
“ _Of course, Boss_ ,” she teased.  
  
Barnes flipped him off. 

  
  


“I asked FRIDAY to compile a list of movies that I gotta see,” Barnes said when Tony walked into the living room.  
  
“Yea? What are we watching tonight?”  
  
“Harry Potter?”  
  
Tony had vague memories of Rhodey forcing him to watch the movies, and constantly complaining that the books were better.  
  
“I’ve heard the books were better,”  
  
“There are books?” Barnes asked.  
  
“I’m sure we have them in the library,”  
  
Barnes seemed to contemplate that for a moment before his shoulders fell slightly. Tony frowned, his eyebrows creasing together.  
  
“I don’... I…” Barnes gestured vaguely to his eyes.  
  
Tony had no idea what he was trying to get at.  
  
“I just… remember information better when it’s read to me,” Barnes said at last, not quite meeting Tony’s eyes.  
  
“Right,”  
  
“Yea, just stay there for a moment, Snowflake,”  
  
Tony headed for the library, he bypassed the non-fiction section and went right for the much smaller fiction section. It didn’t take him long to find the Harry Potter books. Tony had never actually read the series. He just kept finding reasons to put the reading off. He pulled The Sorcerer’s Stone off the shelf and brought it up to Barnes.  
  
“Pepper assures me that they’re the first copies sold in the states,” Tony said as he gestured to the book. He sat on the couch and propped his feet up on the coffee table in front of him, leaning the book against his legs. He offered his hand out to Barnes who slowly took hold of it. The metal was smooth and warm.  
  
“You ready?”  
  
Barnes nodded. Tony flipped through the first couple pages to get to the first chapter.  
  
“Mr. and Mrs. Dursley of number 4, Privet Drive, were proud to say they were perfectly normal, thank you very much…” Tony started.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thousands of miles away shuri is losing her shit


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> enter: Harley Keener and some sass

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yea so i finally graduated college so i have time to write again ((also u know when you have a kid sibling and u always see them as a kid and then one day they're like......... a person?? that's what this chapter is))

“ _Boss_ ,”  
  
“Yea?”  
  
“ _There’s an incoming call from the Keener residence,_ ” she reported. Barnes looked at Tony, eyebrows furrowing slightly.  
  
“Keener? Like… Harley?”  
  
“ _I think so, Boss,_ ”  
  
“Patch him through,”  
  
“What’s up Mechanic?” his voice was older than Tony last recalled, but the last time he had seen Harley Keener the kid had been, well, a kid. Now he sounded like an actual person.  
  
“That’s all you have to say? It’s been… three years, I am hurt kid, hurt,” Tony said in mock exaggeration.  
  
“Uh huh, yea, anyway. I told my mom that I was going to New York to look at colleges but I’ve already decided to go to MIT, so it’s ok if I hang out with you instead, right?”  
  
“MIT? You know that’s where I went-”  
  
“Yea, yea, I don’t have time for your old man stories, Mechanic,” Harley interrupted.  
  
“The level of disrespect I deal with, in my own home too, no less,”  
  
“Tony!” the kid whined out.  
  
Tony laughed.  
  
“Yea sure, what could possibly go wrong,”  
  
“You probably shouldn’ say that,” Barnes warned.  
  
“I agree,” Harley added.  
  
“ _They’ve got a point, Boss,_ ” FRIDAY chimed.  
  
“In my own home,” Tony said quietly.  
  
“See you tomorrow then! Bye!” Harley said and then hung up.  
  
For a second Tony stared at FRIDAY’s nearest speaker.  
  
“Did he just say tomorrow?” Tony asked.  
  
“ _‘Fraid so_ ,” FRIDAY replied.  
  
“Kids these days,” Tony sighed.  
  
“You always this dramatic?” Barnes asked.  
  
“ _Yes,_ ” FRIDAY answered.  
  
“My own home!”

  
  


“ _Hello Mr. Keener! I’m FRIDAY, Boss and Sergeant Barnes are in the communal living room. If you’ll follow the lights I can take you to them,_ ”  
  
Harley followed the lights as instructed by the AI that was most definitely not JARVIS. Harley was afraid to ask what had happened to JARVIS, it couldn’t be good if there was a new AI.  
  
Harley turned into the communal living room to see the Mechanic (Tony Stark) sitting on the couch with the Winter Soldier (Bucky Barnes). And they were holding hands.  
  
“So this is what happens when I leave you alone for three years, you get a new AI, and I come home to find you holding hands with the Winter Soldier,” Harley said with a small shake of his head.  
  
“It’s for science,” Tony replied, not missing a beat.  
  
“It’s not science if you’re not writing it down,” Harley sassed.  
  
“How do you know the data isn’t being recorded by a computer?”  
  
For a second they stared at each other before Tony broke away from Barnes to hug Harley.  
  
“You look like an actual person now, kid,” Tony commented as they parted.  
  
“I am an actual person,” Harley replied.  
  
“Yea, but now you look like one,”  
  
“I’m just going to pretend that made sense,”  
  
“Aw, c’mon kid! I thought we were connected!”  
  
“Guilt tripping me, really?”  
  
“You gon’ introduce us or keep banterin’?” Barnes asked.  
  
Tony looked back at him. Barnes was leaning against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, with a small smile on his face. If Tony didn’t know any better he would once again call the smile ‘fond’.  
  
“Harley Keener,” Tony said with a gesture to the kid.  
  
“Met him after a terrorist blew up my house,”  
  
“I saved his life,” Harley said proudly.  
  
“What’d I tell you about bragging?”  
  
“Something boring, probably,”  
  
Barnes snorted.  
  
“I’m going to find my room and call my mom,” Harley said as he started to walk away.  
  
“Your door has an H on it!” Tony called after him.  
  
“Ask FRIDAY if you need help!” he added.  
  
Harley raised his free hand in acknowledgement before he disappeared down a hallway.  
  
“So uh, how many kids do you have?” Barnes asked, a sly grin on his face.  
  
“I think I’m nearing double digits,” Tony muttered.  
  
Barnes looked mildly alarmed.  
  
“The three bots, FRIDAY, I think Vision counts, the Spiderboy, Harley, and… and JARVIS,”  
  
“And Ultron,” Tony added as an afterthought.  
  
“The bots?”  
  
“Dum-E, U, and Butterfingers,”  
  
Barnes looked lost as ever.  
  
“Snowflake… have you been to my lab before?”  
  
“Didn’ know if it was ok,”  
  
Tony nodded slowly. The bots would love a new person to bother. Dum-E might just whirr himself to exhaustion. Did he want Barnes in the lab? In the only sanctuary he had in the Compound?  
  
“You’re in for a treat today, Tasty Freeze. FRI, let Harley know we’re in the lab if he asks,”  
  
“ _Yes, Boss,_ ”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky meets the bots, Harley Keener continues to sass

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is the first chapter that doesn't start off with Friday saying "Boss" i'm so sorry

Barnes lit up the second he saw the lab.  
  
“Is this real?” he asked, not looking unlike a child in a candy store.  
  
“Of course it is!” Tony responded, trying, and failing, to sound irritated that Barnes had actually asked that question.  
  
“The future is awesome,” Barnes whispered.  
  
“Dum-E!” Tony called. From somewhere in the back of the lab the bot chirped.  
  
“C’mere, there’s someone I want you to meet!”  
  
Dum-E zoomed out from around a few tables and stopped just short of Barnes. Tony found that his hand was linked with Barnes’ metal one.  
  
Dum-E chirped again. His claw gently prodding at Barnes’ shoulder.  
  
“Dum-E this is Sergeant Barnes,” Tony said gently, like he was talking to a small child.  
  
Dum-E reached out and very gently grabbed Barnes’ metal wrist and lifted it up, pulling Tony’s hand with it.  
  
Dum-E chirped excitedly.  
  
“ _Boss,_ ” FRIDAY said, amusement clear in her voice.  
  
“Yea?”  
  
“ _He wants to know if Sergeant Barnes is his little brother,_ ”  
  
“Wha’?” Barnes asked.  
  
“Metal arm. He thinks I made you,”  
  
Tony dropped Barnes’ hand and crouched down. Dum-E followed suit, dropping Barnes’ wrist and dropping his claw to Tony.  
  
“Barnes is human, Dum-E. Be gentle with him ok?”  
  
Dum-E chirped, his claw twisting.  
  
“Who are they?”  
  
Tony pushed himself to his feet to see U and Butterfingers peering out from behind Dum-E.  
  
“U and Butterfingers,” Tony said.  
  
“They’ll warm up to you,” he added.  
  
“They’re amazin’,”  
  
Tony beamed. Barnes spent the better part of the hour talking with the bots in a quiet voice. Tony took that time to return some emails and to go over some of the things R&D wanted from him.  
  
“Do they know?” Barnes asked quietly.  
  
“Hm?”  
  
“About Siberia?”  
  
Tony’s fingers stilled.  
  
“Yea,”  
  
Barnes withdrew slightly. Dum-E chirped in response.  
  
“I talked with them about it, they understand you were forced,” Tony said.  
  
“Tony-”  
  
“We should see what the kid is up to,” Tony interrupted.  
  
“Alrigh’,”

  
  


“What’s going on?” Harley asked. Tony was holding a purple book with red binding, Barnes was sitting on the couch. They were both in their pajamas.  
  
“Reading Harry Potter, you want to join?”  
  
“There’s only one book,” Harley stated.  
  
“Barnes retains information better when it’s read to him,” Tony explained as he flipped through the pages of the book.  
  
“So you’re reading to him?” Harley asked.  
  
“Yep. We try to get through 100 pages or so. We’re on the Mirror of Erised if you want to stay,”  
  
Harley sat down near Barnes and watched as Tony slipped his hand into Barnes’s metal one.  
  
“Christmas was coming. One morning in mid-December, Hogwarts woke to find itself covered in several feet of snow. The lake froze solid and the Weasley twins were punished for bewitching snowballs so that they followed Quirrell around, bouncing off the back of his turban-”  
  
Barnes laughed at that. Harley watched as Tony glanced up at him, a disgustingly fond smile crept over the Mechanics face before he went back to reading.  
  
_Oh my god,_ Harley thought to himself with a disbelieving shake of his head.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another science-ling decides to make an appearance, and Bucky's arm needs more than just a little hand holding to get him used to feeling again.

“Hey, Tony?”  
  
“Yea?”  
  
“Some kid called Peter Parker is trying to video call you,” Harley said.  
  
From where he was playing with the bots, Barnes looked over at them, an expression of suspicious recognition on his face.  
  
“The kid from Germany?”  
  
“Yea,”  
  
Tony snatched his phone up and answered the call.  
  
“Hey Mr. Stark!” Peter said excitedly.  
  
“Hey kid,”  
  
“Oh my god he’s replaced me,” Harley whispered dramatically.  
  
Tony swatted at him with his free hand.  
  
“Listen so May’s been really busy with work and Ned’s on vacation with his family, so I was hoping I could swing by the Compound? It’s totally ok if you’re swamped, I just-”  
  
“It’s fine. Swing by whenever you’re packed,”  
  
“Great! Thank you so much Mr. Stark!”  
  
“Do you need me to send Happy?”  
  
“No it’s ok. Aunt May said she could manage it,”  
  
“Ok,”  
  
“See you tomorrow Mr. Stark!”  
  
“Bye kid,”  
  
Peter ended the call. Harley cleared his throat. Tony closed his eyes.  
  
“I thought we had a connection,”  
  
“Jesus Christ,” Tony whispered.  
  
“And you went and took in _another_ kid,”  
  
“Is this really happening?” Tony asked Barnes.  
  
Barnes pointedly ignored Tony and went back to playing with the bots. Tony looked back at Harley who almost immediately dropped his mad facade to cackle at Barnes ignoring Tony. Tony rolled his eyes and fondly ruffled Harley’s hair.

  
  


“So I was thinkin’,” Barnes started.  
  
“Uh oh,” Tony teased. A smile flickered over Barnes’ face before it died out.  
  
“Oh c’mon Elsa. What’s up?”  
  
“Well… Princess Shuri said that the arm needed t’ get use’ta touch, right?”  
  
“Right,”  
  
“We’ve um- we’ve just been holdin’ hands. There are a lot more sensors on the arm, an’ I was hopin’ to… I just don’ want them to-”  
  
“Arm needs more stimulation. Got it,” Tony said, his hands fluttering over the Harry Potter book in his lap.  
  
Barnes nodded quickly, tucking his hair behind his ear.  
  
“So how do you want to do this?”  
  
Everything they tried felt… weird. Arm around his shoulder? Weird. Arm hooked around his waist? Weirder. Finally Tony pressed his back against Barnes’ chest, wiggled around a bit to get comfortable and to let Barnes get over his initial shock.  
  
“Arm goes right here,” Tony said, picking up the metal arm and wrapping it around himself. There were a few moments of silence as Barnes shifted around beneath him.  
  
“We good? Arm’s alright?”  
  
“S’really sensitive,” Barnes admitted.  
  
“It’s been 70 years- really poor oversight on my part, we’ll have to think of fun new ways to get you used to feeling your arm again,” Tony said.  
  
“I can see the gears in your head turnin’, read the damn book,” Barnes said with a small laugh.  
  
“FRI, is Harley on his way here? Barnes is getting antsy” Tony teased, ignoring Barnes’ jibe.  
  
“Maybe you could start callin’ me James, ‘nstead of Barnes,”  
  
“Whatever you want, Snowflake,”  
  
“James,” Tony said quietly, muling it over.  
  
“Not really Bucky anymore, am I? He didn’ survive the war,”  
  
“If you don’t think you’re Bucky, then you’re not Bucky. James is fine,” Tony said.  
  
Before Barn- James could respond, Harley walked into the communal living room.  
  
“Aw man what the hell?”  
  
“Language!”  
  
Harley eyed them for a moment, an exasperated expression on his face.  
  
“I don’t think I want to know, do I?” Harley asked as he sat down.  
  
“It’s for science,”  
  
“Right,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a thousand miles away:  
> "Brother!! Nakia won the bet!"  
> "They're hugging _already_?"


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> where Tony continues to get sassed and Harley and Peter meet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> listen i haven't slept so....... here's a chapter of boys being soft

“ _Boss,_ ”  
  
Tony glanced up blearily, his hands clenched around his coffee mug like it was his lifeline. Which it was.  
  
“Hm?”  
  
“ _Peter and his aunt just arrived,_ ”  
  
“Ok,”  
  
“You ‘lright?” James asked.  
  
“Tired,” Tony said.  
  
“You seemed pretty tired las’ night,” the _in my arms_ bit went unsaid. Tony heard in anyway.  
  
Tony shrugged in response. Not willing to admit that he’d spent the night tossing and turning, utterly exhausted, thinking about how nice he felt nestled in James’ arms. He was definitely not ready to face those feelings yet- or ever. If he kept doing what he was doing-holding hands and cuddling the ex-Winter Soldier- he was going to have to call in Rhodes for an intervention. Maybe even Pepper and Happy.  
  
“Tony!” May called.  
  
“Kitchen!”  
  
Peter was the first to reach the kitchen, he was followed closely by May. Peter caught sight of James and froze. May didn’t seem to notice.  
  
“Collecting strays?” she teased fondly.  
  
“Always,”  
  
“Well, I should get back on the road. I don’t want to be late,” she said.  
  
“You sure I can’t convince you stay for breakfast?” Tony asked May.  
  
“I need more than coffee for breakfast, and considering that’s all you every have-”  
  
“Hey! I have two- actually James here technically counts as another so- three growing boys here, I’ve got to keep the fridge stocked,”  
  
May glanced at Harley and James.  
  
“Maybe next time,”  
  
She kissed Peter’s cheek gently.  
  
“Call me when you’re home,” he said.  
  
“I will,”  
  
“That goes for after work too!”  
  
May hugged him tightly.  
  
“Thank you again, Tony, I know you didn’t-”  
  
“May,” Tony said kindly.  
  
“It’s a pleasure, really. He’s a great kid,”  
  
Peter flushed.  
  
“He’s alright,” May said fondly.  
  
“Ok, I have to get going. Bye boys,” and with that she swept out of the kitchen leaving Tony, James, Peter, and Harley in an awkward silence.  
  
“I haven’ grown since 1945. Not exactly what’d you call a growin’ boy,” James said quietly.  
  
Tony snorted.  
  
“Mr. Stark,” Peter said lightly.  
  
“Yea?”  
  
“That’s the Winter Soldier,”  
  
“Is it? Hadn’t noticed,”  
  
“Mr. Stark?” Harley repeated, sounding bewildered.  
  
“ _Some people_ still respect me,” Tony replied.  
  
Harley didn’t look impressed. He leaned back against the counter and took a sip of his coffee, eyeing Peter curiously.  
  
“He’s very… new,” Harley said slowly, gesturing to the whole of Peter with his free hand.  
  
“Yea I haven’t had enough coffee for this,”  
  
“I-”  
  
“If you say one thing about us being connected I swear to god I’ll reprogram the toaster to burn your bagels,” Tony warned.  
  
Harley just rolled his eyes.  
  
“Ok what exactly is going on? Because did I fight him?”  
  
“Princess Shuri of Wakanda dropped him off at my doorstep a few weeks ago,”  
  
“Why?”  
  
Both Tony and James shrugged. Peter didn’t look very reassured.  
  
“I’m gonna go unpack,”  
  
Harley glanced at Tony, smirked, and followed Peter out of the kitchen.  
  
“That can’t be good,”  
  
James smiled softly.  
  
“Is it too late to disown them?”  
  
“I’d say so,” James rasped. Tony groaned and leaned against James’ metal arm, resting his head on his shoulder.  
  
“Kids these days,” he lamented, stubbornly trying not to blush when James twined their fingers together.

  
  


“They’re doing what?!” Peter demanded.  
  
Harley just nodded.  
  
“Tony claims it’s for science, but I haven’t seen him write anything down,”  
  
“Wireless?”  
  
“Could be. He’s vague about it. Tony’s not usually vague around me,” Harley muttered.  
  
“He told me to stop being- hey are you SpiderMan?”  
  
Peter turned, stunned until he saw that Harley was holding the suit in his hand.  
  
“You really have to ask that?” Peter shot back.  
  
Harley smirked and tossed it to Peter.  
  
“How’d you meet him?” Peter asked curiously.  
  
“He broke into my shed in Tennessee after he threatened a terrorist,”  
  
“You?”  
  
“Well- he’ll tell you it was in my living room in Queens. But I met him at the Stark Expo,”  
  
“The… the Hammer thing, right?”  
  
Peter nodded.  
  
“How?”  
  
Harley perched himself on the desk while Peter fiddled with his SpiderMan suit.  
  
“I was eight at the time, and wearing an Iron Man mask and cardboard repulsors…” Peter started.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> where Tony may or may not be overly affectionate, and Harley is smug

“We’re teaching Sergeant Barnes to play Mario Kart! Hurry- why are you dressed like that?”  
  
“I have meetings to attend, Ms. Potts is insisting,” Tony said with a pout.  
  
“Boo you wh-”  
  
Peter slapped his hand over Harley’s mouth with a distressed noise. Tony looked at James who just shrugged.  
  
“Whatever. I’ll be back sometime this evening,”  
  
“Whaddya want for dinner?” James asked.  
  
“Something greasy,”  
  
“Burgers it is,”  
  
Tony beamed and swooped down to kiss James on his forehead. James froze. Tony dropped a kiss on top of Harley and Peter’s head and walked out of the room.  
  
Harley looked at Peter. Peter looked at Harley. Then they both turned to look at James.  
  
“What the fuck?”  
  
“ _Language,_ ” FRIDAY warned.  
  
A blush crept over James’ cheeks as he ran his hand through his hair. He opened his mouth as if to say something but nothing seemed to come out.  
“What the fuck?” he whispered.  
  
Harley and Peter looked at each other again.  
  
“We should-” Peter cleared his throat, his own cheeks a little pink.  
  
“We should get back to the game,”  
  
“Yea,”  
  
Harley couldn’t keep the smirk off his face the whole game.

  
  


Tony was in the middle of a boring meeting when he jolted forward. Did he really kiss James on the forehead? He glanced at Pepper to find her glaring at him.  
  
“Excuse me,”  
  
Tony shot out of the room. He tapped his ear piece gently.  
  
“FRI?”  
  
“ _Yes Boss?_ ”  
  
“Did I really fucking kiss him?”  
  
“ _Yes you did,_ ”  
  
“Oh shit,”  
  
“ _Mr. Keener seemed very smug about it,_ ”  
  
“Oh shit,” he said again.  
  
“When I’m done with these meetings remind me to call my platypus,”  
  
“ _Yes, Boss,_ ”  
  
Rhodey was going to kill him.  
  
“Thanks FRI,”  
  
Tony took a deep breath, straightened out his suit jacket, and walked back into the room, his media smile plastered on his face.  
  
“Please continue,”  
  
“Thank you, Mr. Stark,” Pepper said dryly.  
  
He couldn’t tell Rhodey about James without informing Pepper as well. He was so fucked.

  
  


“Tony! You’re just in time! Food should be here in about five minutes!” Harley yelled.  
  
“I have one more phone call to make and I’ll be right there!” Tony shouted back as he wrangeld himself out of his tie.  
  
“You better not be late for dinner, Stark!” James warned.  
  
Tony frowned and walked to the living room where James, Harley and Peter were playing a game that was not Mario Kart, but Mario was still in it. Mario Party?  
  
“You remember that thing about me calling you James? Maybe you could call me Tony. Now I really gotta call my platypus,”  
  
“Is Colonel Rhodes ok?” Peter asked.  
  
“He’s fine,”  
  
_For now,_ Tony’s brain helpfully survived.  
  
“I’ll be right back- is this game as dangerous as Mario Kart?”  
  
“More,” Harley replied.  
  
Tony was quick to leave the room. He spent the whole two minute and 42 second walk to his room trying to figure out how to tell his best friend that he not only was housing James Buchanan Barnes, but he had accidentally… somehow… caught feelings.  
  
Definitely all Shuri’s fault.  
  
“FRIDAY call Rhodes,”  
  
The line rang thrice before Rhodes answered.  
  
“Tones? Is everything ok?”  
  
“Promise not to freak out?”  
  
“Absolutely not,”  
  
“Shit,”  
  
Tony ran his hand through his hair and sighed.  
  
“Well, platypus, you remember Barnes?”  
  
“Oh god,”

  
  


James gently caught Tony’s wrist.  
  
“Is Colonel Rhodes coming here?”  
  
“Yea, couldn’t talk him out of it. Said he could finish up his PT here,” Tony said quietly, not quite meeting James’ eyes.  
  
“Should I leave?”  
  
“What? No!” Tony protested, fingers clutching at the hem of James’ shirt.  
  
“Tony-”  
  
“Rhodey’s pissed at Rogers,” Tony said.  
  
“But I k-”  
  
“You were brainwashed. Rogers wasn’t,”  
  
James looked like he was going to say something but Tony cut him off.  
  
“Why don’t we start Harry Potter early and knock out the last couple of chapters? I think you’re gonna like the 3rd book,”  
  
“Alrigh’”  
  
James’ metal thumb brushed over Tony’s wrist.  
  
“I’ll get the kids,”

  
  


Tony grabbed the book from the library, and headed back up for the communal living room. James was already on the couch while Harley and Peter were sitting on the floor, surrounded by snacks. Tony plopped down on the couch, got situated against James and cracked the book open, completely ignoring the look Harley and Peter sent each other.  
  
“Hermione remained in the hospital wing for several weeks…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my god could u imagine how shuri would react if she knew Tony had smooched James' forehead?


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> warning: extreme softness ahead  
> or, enter James Rhodes, a couple of talks, and Shuri

“ _Good morning Mr. Keener,_ ”  
  
Harley laid in bed, FRIDAY’s Irish lilt rang in his ears. It was unsettlingly different from JARVIS.  
  
“FRIDAY?”  
  
“ _Yes_?”  
  
“What happened to JARVIS?”  
  
He listened intently while FRIDAY detailed what happened to her predecessor.  
  
“Could you pull up his structure?” Harley asked, an idea forming in the back of his mind.  
  
A circular orange… thing appeared before Harley.  
  
“Can you get Parker up here? I think I might need his help,”

  
  


“What’re your boys up to?” James asked.  
  
“FRIDAY refuses to tell me,” Tony muttered with a pout. The two had been locked in Bruce’s lab the whole day, only coming out to grab food to take back into the lab.  
  
“Do’ya know when the Colonel is gettin’ here?” James asked.  
  
“Tonight, I think,”  
  
“And you’re sure he ain't gonna repulsor my ass through a window?”  
  
Tony grinned and reached out to gently squeeze James’ hand.  
  
“It’s gonna be ok,”  
  
James smiled and drew Tony in for a hug, relishing in the delighted noise that escaped Tony as he hugged back.

  
  


Rhodes didn’t show up to the Compound till that night, only a few minutes before Tony started their nightly reading of Harry Potter.  
  
“Oh my god it’s Iron Patriot!”  
  
Tony reacted instantaneously, chucking a tattered pillow at Harley and missing by a mile.  
  
“It’s War Machine you ungrateful heathen,”  
  
Harley couldn’t even pretend to be offended.  
  
“Tones,”  
  
“Iron Patriot is is way cooler,” Harley whispered to Peter.  
  
“I swear to god-”  
  
“Tones,” Rhodey said again.  
  
“Platypus! You’re just in time! We’re about to start the third book,” Tony said, holding his hand out to Rhodes who took it and squeezed gently.  
  
“Are you reading Harry Potter?”  
  
“James wanted to watch the movies and I remember you saying-”  
  
“The books are better,” Rhodes finished softly.  
  
Rhodes sat down on the closest chair and watched Tony settle back against James Barnes- Rhodes was going to have to have a few words with both of them about what was going on.

  
  


“Harry Potter was a highly unusual boy in many ways. For one thing, he hated summer holidays more than any other time of year. For another, he really wanted to do his homework but was forced to do it in secret, in the dead of night. And he also happened to be a wizard,”  
  
Rhodes watched Tony’s expression twist, sympathy overtaking his features. Barnes must have noticed as well as his metal thumb started to rub against the thin stripe of skin between Tony’s shirt and sweatpants. 

  
  


“C’mon Tones,”  
  
Tony linked his fingers with Rhodes and followed him out of the room. James watched them go, his eyes lingering on Tony.  
  
“This could be interesting,” Harley said quietly.  
  
“Don’ do anythin’ stupid,” James warned before he left the room.

  
  


“Tones,” Rhodey sighed quietly.  
  
“Just kinda happened,”  
  
“You kissed him?”  
  
“Just on the forehead,” Tony whined.  
  
“So what are you going to do?”  
  
Tony glanced up at him, eyes wide and vulnerable.  
  
“You’re not going to tell me it’s a bad idea?”  
  
“You’re a grown ass man, Tones, you know who he is, what he’s done. The only thing I care about is making sure he treats you right and makes you happy,”  
  
Tony smiled.  
  
“That and kicking Rogers’ ass,”  
  
Tony laughed at that.  
  
“I’m going to get to bed, I’ll tell you about PT tomorrow,”  
  
“Love you platypus,”  
  
“Love you too, Tones,”  
  
Rhodey walked out of the room. Tony scrubbed his hands over his face.

  
  


Tony attempted to sleep for all of thirty minutes before he gave up. He just couldn’t get comfortable. He pushed himself out of bed and shuffled to Rhodey’s room to hopefully cuddle his honey bear so he could sleep.  
  
Rhodes, however, wasn’t having any of it.  
  
“Just go sleep with him,”  
  
“ _What_?!”  
  
“I haven’t seen you that relaxed in a long time,”  
  
“So I should sleep with him?”  
  
“You know damn well what I meant, Tones,”  
  
Tony whined.  
  
“What am I supposed to say?”  
  
“I’m sure you’ll think of something,”  
  
Rhodes' advice made sense, Tony would have gone to James about the whole sleeping thing… eventually. But Rhodes gave him just the nudge he needed.  
  
“I’m going to tinker,”  
  
“Don’t do anything stupid,” Rhodes warned.  
  
“Platypus, I’m wounded. When have I ever done anything stupid?”  
  
Rhodes smirked.  
  
“Remember when we met-”  
  
Tony shot out of the room, Rhodey’s laugh followed him.

  
  


Tony wasn’t sure how long he’d been in his lab when he got interrupted. He knew he had to talk to James about their sleeping situation, he just really didn’t want to put himself in the position to get rejected. As much as he liked James, and he really did, he wasn’t sure if sharing a bed would cross some kind of line.  
  
“Hey Tony?”  
  
Tony blinked and turned to see Harley. The kid looked uncharacteristically unsure of himself.  
  
“What’s up kid?”  
  
“I just wanted to say… um…” Harley’s fingers twined together as he tried to figure out what to say.  
  
“I’m sorry about JARVIS,” he said quickly, wincing as he spoke.  
  
“What?”  
  
“I know how much he meant to you, and you shouldn’t have had to lose him,”  
  
“Thank you,” Tony said quietly, his voice thick with emotion. He reached out and pulled the kid into a tight hug. Dropping a kiss to the top of his fluffy hair.  
  
Harley shuffled away from Tony, a small smile on his face.  
  
“I gotta get back to the lab,”  
  
“What are you two doing down there anyway?”  
  
Harley grinned.  
  
“You’ll find out soon, old man,”

  
  


Tony took a deep breath and knocked on the door to James’s room. It didn’t take long for James to open it.  
  
“What’reya doin’ here?” James asked, all sleepy eyes and messy hair.  
  
“I can’t sleep,”  
  
James blinked.  
  
“And I’m really comfortable in your arms. So I was thinking we keep doing the whole ‘ _get your arm used to touch_ ’ thing at night to,” Tony said in a rush.  
  
“Tony?”  
  
“Cuddling maybe. I think that’ll help,”  
  
“Me or you?”  
  
“Yes,”  
  
James couldn’t help but smile. Tony was adorable.  
  
“Alrigh’,”  
  
He held the door a little more open for Tony.  
  
“You comin’ Doll?”  
  
Tony blushed as he shuffled into the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a couple thousand miles away:  
> shuri, interrupting a very important meeting  
> "BROTHER THEY'RE SHARING A BED!"  
> T'challa silently hands Okoye some money before carrying on


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys are soft and mushy, there's a flower, Harley and Peter lose their collective shit, Rhodes schemes, and enter from stage right: shuri

“No come back,” Tony whined, reaching for James.  
  
“Go back to sleep, Doll,”  
  
Tony pouted and made grabby hands. James couldn’t resist a smile.  
  
“I’ll be back soon,”  
  
“Where are you going?” Tony asked, an adorable pout forming on his face.  
  
“Farmers Market,”  
  
James wanted nothing more than to kiss the pout from Tony’s lips.  
  
“You can come with me… if you want,” James offered shyly.  
  
“To the farmers market?” Tony asked curiously.  
  
James ducked his head.  
  
“Sometimes reminds me of Budapest,”  
  
“I mean, you don’ gotta come, Doll,”  
  
“I’d like to,”  
  
A tiny smile touched James’ lips.  
  
“Ok,”  
  
“Better get ready then, doll,”  
  
Tony whined as he pushed himself out of bed.

  
  


Tony smoothed out his shirt and tried to convince himself that he wasn’t going on a date with James. Just two friends going on an outing.  
  
“This isn’t a date, right FRI? I would know if it was a date, right?”  
  
“ _Of course you would, Boss_ ,” her voice was dripping with sarcasm.  
  
“Right,”  
  
“ _Sergeant Barnes wants to know if you’re ready_ ,”  
  
“Tell him I’ll be right there,”  
  
“Totally not a date,” he said to his reflection.  
  
He headed out of his room and to the front room where James was waiting for him. James was wearing a dark henley and a sleeve to cover the metal arm.  
  
“Ready, doll?”  
  
“Yes,”  
  
It didn’t take long for them to get to the Farmers Market. It was busy, busier than Tony expected.  
  
James laced his fingers with Tony’s as they neared the first few stands.  
  
“This ok?” James asked quietly.  
  
Tony gave a short nod and squeezed James’ hand gently.

The farmers market was wild. Tony expected it to be small, a few stands of various fruits and veggies. He was very wrong. While most of the stands were various fruits and veggies there were also stands with flowers, honey, jams, breads, various baked goods, and pottery.  
  
James loved watching Tony bounce around excitedly, going from stand to stand, trying out different samples, speaking with the vendors, and generally being completely adorable. James just loved Tony. And it was so incredibly easy to do so.  
  
“Oh!”  
  
Tony dragged James off to a side booth that sold plums.  
  
“Plums? Since when do you like plums?” James asked curiously.  
  
“I don’t, but you do,” Tony said with a small shrug.  
  
James watched Tony converse with the owner. He was utterly charming and so very beautiful.  
  
“Have a nice day,” the woman said.  
  
Tony flashed a brilliant smile.  
  
“You too,”  
  
They continued to meander through the stands, hand in hand.  
  
“Give me a moment, doll,” James murmured.  
  
Tony watched him walk toward the flower stands and speak with an owner. James looked beautiful with his hair in a bun.  
  
Tony was so completely fucked.  
  
James returned to Tony with a small bundle of white flowers. He plucked one of the smaller ones from the bouquet and fingered the stem for a moment. He tucked the small white flower behind Tony’s ear. Tony looked up at James and grinned. James pulled Tony close and kissed the side of his head like he’d been doing it his whole life.  
  
“You ready to go home, doll?”  
  
The blush on Tony’s cheeks was beautiful.  
  
“Yea,”  
  
James threw his arm around Tony’s shoulders and they headed back to Tony’s car.

  
  


“Where have you two been?”  
  
“Farmers Market,” Tony replied as he started to put things in the fridge.  
  
“What for?”  
  
“I asked ‘im to come with me,” James said.  
  
“So you two just… went to the Farmers Market,” Harley stated.  
  
“Yep,”  
  
“Alone,” he added.  
  
“Together,” Peter said at nearly the same time.  
  
Tony set the plum in his hand down on the counter and turned to the boys. Harley couldn’t stop staring at the pretty white flower.  
  
_A gardenia_ , his mind supplied.  
  
“Yes, we were together,” Tony said.  
  
“Like a date?”  
  
Peter slapped his hand over Harley’s mouth as both men froze.  
  
“We’re going to go now,” Peter squeaked and yanked Harley out of the room.  
  
Tony and James looked at each other, both a remarkable shade of red.  
  
“Kids,” Tony said nervously.  
  
“They say the damndes’ things,” James agreed.

  
  


“What the hell did you say that for?” Peter hissed once they got back to the safety of Harley’s room.  
  
“Did you see the flower?”  
  
“Of course I saw the flower,”  
  
“Well, it means something,”  
  
“What? It’s a flower!”  
  
“My sister is really into flowers,” Harley said by way of explanation.  
  
“So?”  
  
“So, flowers have meanings,”  
  
“Dummy,” Harley added a little fondly.  
  
Peter ducked his head and flushed.  
  
“Tony had a gardenia,”  
  
“How do you know that?”  
  
Harley suddenly became very interested in his phone.  
  
“Ok so maybe I also like them,”  
  
“That’s-”  
  
“Anyway, the gardenia means purity, sweetness, and love,”  
  
Peter glanced at Harley.  
  
“You don’t fucking think…”  
  
“ _Language_ ,” FRIDAY chimed.  
  
“Oh I absolutely fucking thing,”  
  
FRIDAY, surprisingly, was silent.  
  
“What do we do? I mean… does Mr. Stark… y’know…”  
  
Harley shrugged.  
  
“I dunno,”  
  
Before they could say any more the door to Harley’s room opened.  
  
“Ok. FRIDAY alerted me about your language. What are you two doing?” Rhodes demanded when he stepped into the room.  
  
Harley and Peter glanced at each other, silently daring the other to go first.  
  
“He put a gardenia behind Mr. Starks ear!” Peter blurted out.  
  
“Ok…?”  
  
“They symbolize like… love,”  
  
This seemed to peak Rhodey’s interest.  
  
“Love?”  
  
“Alright. Tell me what you know,”

  
  


After putting their groceries away, James followed Tony down to the lab like a little lost puppy. He played with the bots while Tony worked on SI things. James adored the bots, they acted like children, or particularly rambunctious puppies.  
  
“Hey Tony?” James asked, recalling a conversation they had had a while ago.  
  
“Hm?”  
  
“Who’s JARVIS?”  
  
Tony faltered and stilled, keeping his back turned to James.  
  
“Well, the original Jarvis was human. He was our butler back in the day. He raised me. Then he died. And I made an AI called JARVIS. Just A Rather Very Intelligent System. He was a lot like FRIDAY. He was… he was always there. Always guiding me, sassing me, helping me… he was my son. Now he’s gone,”  
  
“I’m sorry,”  
  
Tony gave a jerky shrug.  
  
“I uh… I think it’s about time we start on Harry Potter, you wanna get the boys?” Tony asked before James could say anything else.  
  
“Right,”  
  
James turned out of the lab and pulled out his phone. He dialed up the number he was only supposed to call in case of arm-related emergencies.  
  
“Sergeant Barnes? Are you ok?” Princess Shuri asked.  
  
“Everythin’ is fine with the arm, but I think I need your help with somethin’. Any chance you can come to the Compound?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "brother! I am going to the Avengers Compound to witness the flirting first hand!"  
> "be careful... and take pictures for proof!"


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the boys are soft, and waiting in the wings is a character ready to make their entrance. 
> 
> Shuri is just here to witness the Softness first hand.
> 
> Or, more importantly, the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bonus points if u find the psych reference

Rhodes stepped into the gym to find Barnes whaling on one of the industrial strength punching bags.  
  
“So,” Rhodey started.  
  
Barnes paused. Metal fist resting against the punching bag.  
  
“Was it a date?”  
  
Barnes turned to face Rhodey.  
  
“I woulda liked that,” Barnes admitted.  
  
Rhodes nodded slowly.  
  
“You… make him happy, Barnes,”  
  
Barnes flushed at that.  
  
“I hope you keep him happy. He deserves that much,”  
  
“He deserves a lot more than that,” Barnes drawled.  
  
“You’re damn right he does,”  
  
Barnes and Rhodes held each others gazes for a moment before Barnes offered out his hand and Rhodes shook it.

  
  


“ _Sergeant Barnes_?”  
  
“Yes, ma’am?”  
  
“ _Princess Shuri of Wakanda has just arrived_ ,”  
  
James made a quick pit stop at the kitchen to refill his coffee mug.  
  
“Morning!” Peter chirped.  
  
Harley just lifted a hand in greeting.  
  
“Mornin’,” James drawled.  
  
He took a sip of his coffee and headed outside to greet the Princess. He was banking everything on the chance that she could help him.  
  
Happy Hogan opened the door and Princess Shuri stepped out of the car.  
  
“Sergeant Barnes,” she greeted with a smile.  
  
“Princess,”  
  
“So this is the Avengers Compound?” she asked, not sounding impressed.  
  
“Yep,”  
  
“Thought it would be bigger,”  
  
James struggled against the smile trying to claw its way onto his face.  
  
“I’ll be sure to let Tony know,”  
  
Happy set a large suitcase down.  
  
“Oh, thank you Happy,” Shuri said gently.  
  
Happy gave a short nod. He glanced at James for a second before closing the trunk, getting back into the car, and driving off.  
  
“Well come on in, Princess,”  
  
“Lead the way, White Wolf,” she said with a smirk.

  
  


“So who’s this?” Harley asked before shoving a spoonful of cereal in his mouth.  
  
“Princess Shuri of Wakanda,”  
  
Harley and Peter glanced at each other, then at Shuri, then at the arm, and then back at each other again. James really didn’t want to know what that was all about.  
  
“And she built the arm?”  
  
“Yes,”  
  
Harley and Peter looked at each other for the third time.  
  
“We need you for science!” Harley announced and promptly dragged the Princess off, leaving behind his bowl of cereal, like a heathen.  
  
James just watched it happen. He wasn’t entirely too sure how he was supposed to get her to help him with JARVIS if she was going to be sciencing with Harley and Peter.  
  
“ _If I may, Sergeant_ ,” FRIDAY interrupted.  
  
James tilted his head up toward the ceiling as an acknowledgement that he was listening.  
  
“ _I think you and Mr. Keener had the same idea. Resurrecting JARVIS_ ,”  
  
“Is that wha’ they’ve been doin’?” he asked.  
  
“ _I’ve been helping where I can_ ,” she admitted.  
  
James smiled softly. FRIDAY was such a sweet AI. He glanced back up toward the ceiling, a frown pulling at his lips.  
  
“What happens to you if they managed to bring JARVIS back?” he asked quietly.  
  
“ _I’m not sure. Boss might let me stay, run the place with JARVIS_ ,”  
  
“I hope he does, ma’am,”  
  
“ _Thank you, Sergeant_ ,”  
  
James smiled softly and picked up the mess the boys left at the table.

  
  


“Did you adopt _another_ kid?” Rhodey demanded the moment he caught sight of Shuri.  
  
“Nope. This one is all Winter Wonderland’s,” Tony said, gesturing to James.  
  
“Actually this one is Princess Shuri. From Wakanda,” Tony added.  
  
Shuri grinned at Rhodes. For a moment Rhodes had no idea what to even say to that.  
  
“So… what brings you… _here_?”  
  
She shrugged.  
  
“Science,” she said simply.  
  
“Your brother knows, right?”  
  
“Yes,”  
  
“Oh thank god,” James muttered, earning himself a few interested glances.  
  
“He’s tried to kick my ass enough in the pas’ few months, thanks,”  
  
Tony snorted.

  
  


“Before we start Harry Potter, there’s something we gotta show you,” Harley interrupted.  
  
Tony put down the book and looked at the three teenagers.  
  
“Is this going to take long? I really like this one,”  
  
“It’ll take as long as it takes, old man,” Harley said.  
  
Tony crossed his arms, trying his best to look offended.  
  
“Is it ready?” Harley asked Shuri.  
  
“Yes,” she said.  
  
“Like, ready ready?”  
  
“Yes!”  
  
“Ok. You ready?” Harley asked, barely able to contain his excitement.  
  
“Should I be worried?” Tony asked instead, glancing at Rhodes and James.  
  
“Oh come on old man, first thing I did when we met was prove you wrong,” Harley shot back.  
  
“This is true. Continue,”  
  
Harley grinned.  
  
“Well, we’ve been working on something in secret,”  
  
“Yes I know,”  
  
“Would you let us finish?”  
  
“I think I can manage,”  
  
“You, of course, recognize this,”  
  
Shuri flicked the device in her hands and purple holographic interface appeared. Tony beamed at it.  
  
“Hi FRIDAY,”  
  
“ _Hi Boss_!”  
  
Shuri glanced at Peter and then Harley before she flicked the device again. Next to FRIDAY appeared an orange holographic interface.  
  
Next to Tony, Rhodes stilled, recognizing the interface. Tony stared at it for a long time.  
  
Harley and Peter looked at each other, their hands clasped tightly together. Harley hoped to god that they hadn’t overstepped some kind of boundary bring JARVIS back.  
  
“J?” Tony whispered, his eyes transfixed on the orange interface.  
  
“ _Hello, Sir_ ,” JARVIS said.  
  
“I… I don’t understand,”  
  
“I remember JARVIS, how much you cared about him, and I wanted to do something nice for you. I mean you changed my life,” Harley shot him a shy smile and shrugged.  
  
“Plus everything you do to keep Spiderboy safe…”  
  
Peter nudged Harley, soft smile on his face.  
  
“We just wanted to say thank you, Mr. Stark,” Peter said.  
  
Harley glanced back at Shuri.  
  
“I actually don’t know why she’s here,”  
  
“To bring back JARVIS,” James interrupted.  
  
All eyes turned to James, but he just looked at Tony. The genius was on the verge of tears.  
  
“I didn’ know what they were plannin’ an’ I figured if anyone could bring back JARVIS, it’d be her,”  
  
Tony looked back at the orange interface.  
  
“J… it’s you?”  
  
“ _Indeed it is, Sir. Mr. Keener, Mr. Parker, the Princess, and FRIDAY have been hard at work piecing me back together_ ,” JARVIS said.  
  
“You’re… you’re back?”  
  
“ _Yes, Sir_ ,”  
  
Tony pushed himself to his feet, the Harry Potter book crashing to the floor. He carefully stepped around JARVIS’s interface and pulled Harley into a tight hug. He reached out and pulled Peter and Shuri in as well.  
  
“Thank you,” he said quietly.

  
  


“You called her here just for JARVIS?” Tony asked.  
  
James nodded.  
  
“Why?”  
  
Tony was leaning against the doorframe in a pair of grease stained sweats and an MIT sweater. His eyes were tinged red.  
  
“Why the hell wouldn’ I, doll? It was obvious that you were missin’ him, an’ I wanted to help,”  
  
“He’s my baby,” Tony whispered.  
  
“I’m glad they were able to piece him together,”  
  
Tony rubbed his eyes.  
  
“What’s he doin’ now?”  
  
“Integrating, he’s got a couple years worth of information to get through,”  
  
James nodded.  
  
“An’ what about FRIDAY?”  
  
“I’ll keep her around, might be better to have two AI’s around here,” Tony said.  
  
“Good, I like her,”  
  
“ _Thank you very much, Sergeant_ ,” FRIDAY chimed.  
  
They both looked up at the nearest speaker.  
  
“I guess I’ll let you get to bed,”  
  
Tony shifted.  
  
“Doll, wait,”  
  
Tony looked at him, all doey eyes and small smiles. He was so god damn beautiful it almost hurt.  
  
“I love you,”  
  
“You…”  
  
Tony shifted and blinked.  
  
“You love me?”  
  
“Like. What do you mean? You love me? Like… love love?-”  
  
James crossed his room in long strides and stopped just in front of Tony, who was for whatever reason rambling about something in his lab.  
  
“You’re deflectin’,” James said quietly.  
  
“No I’m not,”  
  
“Yes you are,”  
  
“Yes I am,”  
  
James grinned.  
  
“So you like me,”  
  
“Love,” James corrected.  
  
“Are you gonna do anything about it or are we just going to stand here?”  
  
“Well I think I am doin’ somethin’,” James said.  
  
“What do you call this then?” Tony asked.  
  
“I call it really close talkin’,”  
  
Tony grinned and pulled James down to kiss him.

  
  


“ _Sir_ ,”  
  
Tony lifted his head to look at the closest speaker.  
  
“ _I have finished integrating myself into the mainframe_ ,”  
  
“And?”  
  
“ _The latest Mark should be fine tuned. It can be made 1.459% more aerodynamic_ ,”  
  
Tony dropped his head and laughed.  
  
“Thanks, J,”  
  
Tony grabbed the sheets and pulled them over the network of scars on his chest.  
  
“You always take care of me J,” Tony murmured.  
  
“ _I try my best, Sir_ ,”  
  
James pulled Tony into his arms.  
  
“Ain’t you sleepy yet, doll?” he mumbled.  
  
“Tell me you love me,” Tony demanded.  
  
“I love you,”  
  
Tony could hear the smile in James’ voice.  
  
“I love you too,” Tony said.

  
  


“Did you two finally fuck?” Rhodes asked the second James and Tony walked into the kitchen.  
  
“Jesus Christ Rhodey!”  
  
James just closed his eyes.  
  
“I’ll take that as a yes,”  
  
Tony poured himself a mug of coffee and turned back to his best friend and his… boyfr… his… James.  
  
“You’re a menace,” Tony said to Rhodes.  
  
“Learned from the best, Tones,”  
  
“Unbelievable,”  
  
“Do you hear this James?”  
  
James grinned at him.  
  
“Oh I think he might be right, doll,”  
  
“Betrayal,”  
  
“I like your boyfriend, Tones, he’s got a bit of sense,”  
  
Both James and Tony flushed at the use of the word boyfriend.  
  
“You both are disgusting,” Rhodes grumbled.  
  
“ _I concur_ ,” JARVIS agreed.  
  
“J you wound me!” Tony said with a pout.

  
  


“It’s nice t’meet you, officially, JARVIS,” James said quietly.  
  
“ _It’s nice to be back_ ,” JARVIS said a little stiffly.  
  
“You don’ like me too much, do you J?” James asked curiously.  
  
“ _You make the Sir happy, Sergeant Barnes_ ,” JARVIS said, completely blindsiding James.  
  
“ _I am constantly wary of new people in his life. There have been too many times I have been unable to protect him_ ,”  
  
“I’m not… I don’ want to hurt him,” James said.  
  
“ _Based on your actions that much is obvious_ ,”  
  
James smiled softly.  
  
“ _Sergeant Barnes_?” JARVIS asked a touch hesitantly.  
  
“Yea?”  
  
“ _Captain Rogers is unaware you are here, correct_?”  
  
“He thinks I’m still in cryo,” James told him.  
  
“ _If he was here I think I would so enjoy making his life as difficult as possible_ ,”  
  
“I don’ doubt that,” James said with a grin.

  
  


“When you get to MIT we should hang out,” Harley said suddenly.  
  
Peter looked up sharply.  
  
“That- that won’t be for another two years,” Peter said.  
  
“So? I go next year,” Harley said with a shrug.  
  
“Besides, what am I supposed to do at MIT without my friendly neighborhood spiderman?”  
  
Peter flopped down on the couch in a poor attempt to hide the blush covering his face.  
  
“So MIT?” he asked.  
  
“MIT,” Harley agreed.  
  
A promise for future them.  
  
“Hey kids,”  
  
Tony shuffled into the room with a Harry Potter book in his hands. He was followed by James, Rhodes, and Princess Shuri.  
  
“Prisoner of Azkaban?” Harley asked.  
  
“We’re down to the last couple chapters,” Tony said.  
  
Tony and James got settled on the couch, Rhodes sat in his usual chair, Harley and Peter continued to lounging out on the couch, and Shuri sat on the loveseat, unabashedly taking photos of Tony and James with a grin on her face.  
  
Tony cracked open the book and flipped through it till he reached the right chapter.  
  
“‘It took a few seconds for the absurdity of this statement to sink in. Then Ron voiced what Harry was thinking’,” Tony read.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and in conclusion I would like to thank everyone who read this, who left kudos, and commented, you are all truly the best and I appreciate it so much.  
> and of course thank you Ica, thank you for the idea of this story and I hope you've enjoyed it as much as I have enjoyed writing it.  
> cheers fam.

**Author's Note:**

> [my pal ica put this prompt in the winteriron discord and i thought to myself... nice, so here we are](http://www.anthonystarhk.tumblr.com/)


End file.
